A sublime first half display saw Yeovil Town cruise to a 3-0 win over Stevenage.

Sam Surridge struck twice either side of Fela Olomola's goal to leave Yeovil three goals up after 39 minutes and in a commanding lead that they never came close to surrendering.

Olomola and Stevenage's Kevin Toner were then sent off in the second half after a challenge from Joe Martin on the on-loan Southampton youngster sparked a mass brawl, before Francois Zoko saw red for a high foot on Jack King as Yeovil ended the day with nine men.

Darren Way rolled the dice and included Surridge, Olomola, Francois Zoko and Otis Khan in an ultra-attacking starting line-up as he looked to apply early pressure to an out of form Stevenage.

It was the visitors who almost took a fortuitous lead, though, as Omar Sowunmi's attempted clearance rebounded off Matt Worthington and into the path of Chris Whelpdale, whose close range shot cannoned off the inside of the post.

Yeovil found their feet after a tentative start, and took the lead in impressive fashion after 24 minutes as James Bailey's shot rebounded to Surridge, who serenely curled home from just inside the box.

It was only three minutes before the Glovers doubled their advantage, as referee Chris Sarginson played a superb advantage once Zoko had been fouled, allowing Otis Khan and Olomola to advance on the Stevenage goal, with Khan teeing up the Southampton youngster for his seventh goal of the season.

Stevenage were rattled and their day got worse six minutes before half-time as they fell asleep from a Khan corner and left acres of space for Surridge to run into and volley home from six yards.

Yeovil almost conceded in bizarre fashion moments into the second half, as Danny Newton's shot was saved by Artur Krysiak and then rebounded off Nathan Smith, almost nestling in the bottom corner before just landing wide.

Then both teams were reduced to ten men as Martin fouled Olomola, who was deemed to have kicked out and shown his marching orders.

His actions sparked a melee involving nearly every player on the field as Toner then bustled in and made some form of physical contact with an opponent that warranted his dismissal.

Yeovil were not shaken by losing Olomola and with the numbers equal they continued to press, as Khan forced Joe Fryer into a good save from 25 yards before Tom James' dipping free-kick called the Stevenage keeper into action again.

Stevenage continued to hunt for a consolation and nearly pulled one back when Dale Gorman set up Alex Samuel, but his effort was well stopped.

With the game petering out, Yeovil were sent down to nine men when Zoko left his foot high, needlessly given the game situation, and he made contact with King's head, leaving the referee with no choice but to send him off.

The double dismissal will leave Yeovil short on numbers for the visit of Southend United in the FA Cup next weekend, but on the day, that did little to take the gloss off a superb attacking display that yielded a fully deserved win.

Yeovil Town manager Darren Way said: “We knew they were an attacking threat. I thought we exploited their weaknesses and in the first half it could have been 5-0 or 6-0.

“You’ve always got to be cautious because I’ve been in that position at Exeter, but to do it with two less players and hold on, credit must go to them.

“It was a great performance by Sam, not just for his age, but it’s not just him and like I said last week, experience builds mindset and what you can see is that every game that these players play, they’re gaining more experience, they’re gaining more confidence and they look like they’re enjoying it, and that’s a big, big thing.

“We sense opportunity in every game. I just think the difference today was the discipline, defensively, and that excites me because every time we’ve been strong, resilient, and keep the ball out of the back of the net, we’re such a danger going forward, and that’s what we’ve seen today."

Yeovil Town: Krysiak, Mugabi, Sowunmi, N Smith, James, Bailey, Worthington, Khan (Browne 82), Olomola, Zoko, Surridge
Unused subs: Scott, Davies, Nelson, C Smith, Gray, Santos
Booked: Bailey
Sent off: Olomola, Zoko
Goals: Surridge (24, 39), Olomola (27)

Stevenage: Fryer, Henry, Vancooten (Wilkinson 45), Franks (Toner 54), Martin, King, Gorman, Pett, Whelpdale, Newton, Wootton (Samuel 45)
Unused subs: Day, Conlon, Slater, Wilmot
Booked: King, Gorman
Sent off: Toner

Referee: Chris Sarginson
Attendance: 2,439 (101 away fans)